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President Obama will reveal a new proposal to consolidate federal agencies at a White House event later this morning, an official tells Fox News. The problem is that the authority he seeks to carry out the plan will have to come from a Congress he's had bitter battles with over the past year.

In his 2011 State of the Union address, the president complained of government overlap and red tape that clogs the federal government, promising to tackle the problem. He injected a bit of humor into his speech to illustrate the point, "The Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them when they're in saltwater," he said to laughter. "I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked."

By late that year, however, officials shied away from forecasting when the president would fulfill his promise.

Early Friday morning, the White House announced Mr. Obama will seek authority from Congress, not granted since the days of Ronald Reagan, to reorganize and consolidate portions of the federal government. His first proposal would be to reduce redundancy in the area of trade and commerce.

Should Congress grant the president this streamlining authority, each proposal he made would then receive an up-or-down vote from Congress within 90 days.

However, the president's track record with Congress isn't exactly favorable, following public disputes over issues like the nation's debt ceiling and extending payroll tax cuts. In an increasingly fierce election season, the president's move could be aimed at putting Congress on the defense.

The administration has for months highlighted a "We Can't Wait" campaign, intended to showcase issues that the White House says Congress isn't acting on. The president, therefore, has been unilaterally taking action; igniting controversy over whether he is overstepping his Constitutional authority.

"The illusion of freedom will continue as long as it's profitable to continue the illusion. At the point where the illusion becomes too expensive to maintain, they will just take down the scenery..." ~Frank Zappa

ďOf all tyrannies a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.Ē -- C. S. Lewis

I doubt if any move to actually shift a function from one branch to another would pass in Congress on the up or down vote, but at that same time I also don't see Congress treating this whole proposal as any kind of a priority issue with the next Presidential election just ten months away.

I doubt if any move to actually shift a function from one branch to another would pass in Congress on the up or down vote, but at that same time I also don't see Congress treating this whole proposal as any kind of a priority issue with the next Presidential election just ten months away.

Given the fact he's already shown his willingness to thumb his nose at Congress...I doubt he'd go to seek their up or down approval before doing whatever it is he has planned by asking for this new power.

Given the fact he's already shown his willingness to thumb his nose at Congress...I doubt he'd go to seek their up or down approval before doing whatever it is he has planned by asking for this new power.

I'm beginning to think we have only two branches of government, the executive and his Czars and an impotent court system that he controls.

The difference between pigs and people is that when they tell you you're cured it isn't a good thing.

With any other president, this would not be a problem, but Obama's administration has demonstrated such contempt for the law in so many areas that I'm inclined not to give him any more power, since he's abused the powers that he already has, not to mention quite a few that he doesn't.